Graphical order entry user interface for trading system

ABSTRACT

On a display terminal of an electronic trading system, a graph is displayed having a first axis and a second axis, wherein the graph includes a curve corresponding to a range of values of a financial instrument. A user is allowed to select a portion of the graph. In response to the user selection of the portion of the graph, a trading dialog box is displayed on the display of the workstation, the dialog box being automatically populated with values for trading, the values based on the values of the selected portion of the graph.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to application Ser. No. 13/768,466,filed on Feb. 15, 2013, which is a continuation of application Ser. No.12/756,489, filed on Apr. 8, 2010, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,380,611, which isa continuation of application Ser. No. 11/465,060, filed on Aug. 16,2006, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,696,997, which is a continuation ofapplication Ser. No. 10/306,996, filed on Nov. 27, 2002, now U.S. Pat.No. 7,113,190.

BACKGROUND

This application claims priority from U.S. application Ser. No.11/465,060 filed Aug. 16, 2006, issuing Apr. 13, 2010 as U.S. Pat. No.7,696,997 titled “Interactive Graphical Representation of a Market foran Electronic Trading System” and Ser. No. 10/306,996, filed Nov. 27,2002 and now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,113,190, titled “Systems andmethods for providing an interactive graphical representation of amarket for an electronic trading system,” both of which are incorporatedby reference.

This application relates to the trading or exchange of securities orcommodities within an organized system.

Electronically-based trading systems have gained widespread popularityover the years. Such trading systems are frequently used for tradingitems ranging from financial instruments (such as stocks, bonds,currency, futures contracts, etc.) to used household goods (such as oldrecords, baseball cards, antiques, etc.). In many of these tradingsystems, bid/offer-hit/lift processes are used to negotiate a sale of agiven item. In connection with such processes, bids and/or offers foritems are entered into an electronic trading system, and a hit or liftis submitted in response to a bid or offer, respectively, to agree to asale or purchase.

Currently, prior to entering a bid or offer into an electronic tradingsystem or submitting a hit or lift in response to a specific bid oroffer, traders can review trading-related information in a tabularformat. For example, the trader can access a table that includes a listof financial instruments and corresponding bids and offers for each ofthe instruments. Based on the information provided to the trader in thetable, the trader can determine, for example, what bids or offers toenter into the electronic trading system or which existing bids andoffers are desirable to hit or lift. However, these determinations canbe difficult due to the overwhelming amount of information provided tothe trader in the table.

Currently, traders can also access graphical representations offinancial markets to gain an overall understanding of a market'sactivity. Graphs, in contrast to tables of financial information, makeit easier for the trader to determine market trends. However, thesegraphs are not interactive, as the trader is only provided with arepresentation of the current activity of a market and is not able toenter a bid or offer or submit a hit or lift directly from the graph.

SUMMARY

In general, in a first aspect, the invention features methods andapparatus for providing an interactive graphical representation of amarket. The apparatus has a server storage device and a server processorconnected to the server storage device, the server storage devicestoring a server program for controlling the server processor. Theserver processor is operative with the server program to (a) display agraph having a first axis and a second axis on a display of aworkstation, wherein the graph includes a curve corresponding to a rangeof values of a financial instrument; (b) allow a user to select aportion of the graph; and (c) in response to the user selection of theportion of the graph, display a trading dialog box on the display of theworkstation.

In general, in a second aspect, the invention features a method andapparatus for providing an interactive graphical representation of amarket The apparatus has a server storage device and a server processorconnected to the server storage device, the server storage devicestoring a server program for controlling the server processor. Theserver processor is operative with the server program to: (a) display agraph having a first axis and a second axis on a display of aworkstation, wherein the graph includes (i) a plurality of firstsymbols, wherein each first symbol of the plurality of first symbolscorresponds to a bid for a particular financial instrument; and (ii) aplurality of second symbols, wherein each second symbol of the pluralityof second symbols corresponds to an offer for a particular financialinstrument; (b) allow a user to select a portion of the graph; and (c)in response to the user selection of the portion of the graph,displaying a trading dialog box on the display of the workstation.

Embodiments of the invention may include one or more of the followingfeatures. The first axis may correspond to maturity date. The secondaxis may correspond to price. The second axis may correspond to yield.The curve may be a fair value curve. The portion of the graph may belocated within the confines of the first and second axes. Allowing theuser to select a portion of the graph may include allowing the user toselect a portion of the curve. The trading dialog box may includeinformation relating to the selected portion of the graph. The serverprogram may be configured to allow the user to select a portion of thecurve. The trading dialog box may include information relating to theselected portion of graph. The server program may be configured to allowthe user to select a first symbol. Allowing the user to select a portionof the graph may include allowing the user to select a first symbol. Thetrading dialog box may include information relating to a bidcorresponding to the selected first symbol. The server program may beconfigured to allow the user to select a second symbol. Allowing theuser to select a portion of the graph may include allowing the user toselect a second symbol. The trading dialog box may includes informationrelating to an offer corresponding to the selected second symbol. Theserver program may be configured to allow the user to select both afirst symbol and a second symbol. Allowing the user to select a portionof the graph may include allowing the user to select both a first symboland a second symbol. The trading dialog box may include informationrelating to a bid corresponding to the selected first symbol and anoffer corresponding to the selected second symbol.

The above advantages and features are of representative embodimentsonly, and are presented only to assist in understanding the invention.It should be understood that they are not to be considered limitationson the invention as defined by the claims. Additional features andadvantages of embodiments of the invention will become apparent in thefollowing description, from the drawings, and from the claims.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an illustrative electronic tradingsystem suitable for implementation of a graphical trading interfaceapplication.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a workstation, a server, and a backoffice clearing center that may be used to implement the processes andfunctions of some embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a graphical trading interface that may be provided to a userby the graphical trading interface application;

FIG. 4 is a graphical trading interface, such as the interface shown inFIG. 3, having a selectable date range overlay;

FIG. 5 is another graphical trading interface that may be provided tothe user by the graphical trading interface application;

FIG. 6 is a graphical trading interface, such as the interface shown inFIG. 5, having a trading information overlay;

FIG. 7 is a graphical trading interface, such as the interface shown inFIG. 5, having a trading dialog box overlay;

FIG. 8 is yet another graphical trading interface that may be providedto the user by the graphical trading interface application;

FIG. 9 is still another graphical trading interface that may be providedto the user by the graphical trading interface application;

FIG. 10 is a graphical trading interface, such as the interface shown inFIG. 9, having a trading dialog box overlay; and

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of illustrative steps involved in providing aninteractive graphical representation of a market.

DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIG. 1, a graphical representation of a market may providean interactive graphical representation of a market for an electronictrading system that allows a user to, for example, place a tradedirectly from the graphical representation. The systems and methods mayprovide an interactive graphical representation of a market for anelectronic trading system that allows a user to, for example, place atrade directly from the graphical representation are provided.

A graph having a first axis and a second axis may be displayed on adisplay of a workstation. In one example, the graph may include a curvecorresponding to a range of values of a financial instrument. In anotherexample, the graph may include a plurality of first symbols and aplurality of second symbols. Each first symbol of the plurality of firstsymbols may correspond to a bid for a financial instrument. Each secondsymbol of the plurality of second symbols may correspond to an offer fora financial instrument. A user may be allowed to select a portion of thegraph. In response to the user selection of the portion of the graph, atrading dialog box may be displayed on the display of the workstation.

Referring to FIG. 1, electronic trading system 100 suitable forimplementation of a graphical trading interface application may includeone or more workstations 102. Workstations 102 may be local or remote.Workstations 102 are connected by one or more communication links 104 tocommunications network 106 that is connected via communication link 108to server 110. Server 110 is connected via communication link 112 toback office clearing center 114.

Server 110 may be any server suitable for providing access to thegraphical trading interface application, such as a processor, acomputer, a data processing device, or a combination of such devices. Inone example, server 110 may be a server powered by eSpeed, Inc. Server110 and back office clearing center 114 may form part of the electronictrading system. Furthermore, server 110 may contain the graphicaltrading interface application and merely transmit a graphical userinterface (GUI) or other display screens to a user at a userworkstation, such as workstation 102.

Communications network 106 may be any suitable communications networkincluding the Internet, an intranet, a wide-area network (WAN), alocal-area network (LAN), a wireless network, a digital subscriber line(DSL) network, a frame relay network, an asynchronous transfer mode(ATM) network, a virtual private network (VPN), a public switchedtelephone network, any other suitable communications network, or acombination of such networks. Communication links 104 and 108 may be anycommunication links suitable for communicating data between workstations102 and server 110, such as network links, dial-up links, wirelesslinks, any other suitable communication link, or a combination of suchlinks.

Workstations 102 may include, for example, any suitable personalcomputer (PC), mainframe computer, dumb terminal, data display, two-waypager, wireless terminal, portable telephone, portable computer (e.g., anotebook computer), palmtop computer, handheld personal computer (H/PC),automobile PC, personal digital assistant (PDA), Internet-enabledcellular phone, combined cellular phone and PDA, any other suitablecomputing device, or a combination of such devices. Workstations 102 maybe used to implement the graphical trading interface application.

Back office clearing center 114 may be any suitable equipment, such as acomputer, a laptop computer, a mainframe computer, any other suitablecomputing device, or a combination of such computing devices, forcausing transactions to be cleared and/or verifying that transactionsare cleared. Communication link 112 may be any communication linksuitable for communicating data between server 110 and back officeclearing center 114, such as a network link, a dial-up link, a wirelesslink, a hard-wired link, or any other suitable communication link.

Server 110, back office clearing center 114, and a workstation 102,which are depicted in FIG. 1, are illustrated in more detail in FIG. 2.Referring to FIG. 2, workstation 102 may include processor 202, display204, input device 206, and memory 208, which may be interconnected. In apreferred embodiment, memory 208 contains a storage device for storing aworkstation program for controlling processor 202. Memory 208 alsopreferably contains a graphical trading interface application 210.

As shown in FIG. 2, graphical trading interface application 210 mayinclude application program interface 212. Alternatively, as describedabove, graphical trading interface application 210 may be resident inthe memory of server 110. In such embodiments, the electronic tradingsystem may contain graphical trading interface application 210 andapplication program interface 212 as an application that is discretefrom the electronic trading application, which also may be includedtherein. The only distribution to the user may be a GUI which allows theuser to interact with graphical trading interface application 210resident at server 110.

Processor 202 uses the workstation program to present on display 204,for example, graphical trading interface information received throughcommunication link 104 and trading commands and values transmitted by atrader at workstation 102. Furthermore, input device 206 may be used tomanually enter commands and values to be communicated to the electronictrading system.

Server 110 may include processor 220, display 222, input device 224, andmemory 226, which may be interconnected. In a preferred embodiment,memory 226 contains a storage device for storing information relating tomarket conditions received through communication link 108 or throughother links, and also receives trading commands and values transmittedby one or more users. The storage device further contains a serverprogram for controlling processor 220. Processor 220 uses the serverprogram to transact the purchase and sale of financial instruments.

Back office clearing center 114 may include processor 228, display 230,input device 232, and memory 234, which may be interconnected. In apreferred embodiment, memory 234 contains a storage device for storing aclearing program for controlling processor 228. Processor 228 may usethe clearing program to complete the transactions that are entered intoby the users. Processor 228 uses the clearing program to further verifythat the transactions are completed and cleared.

The electronic trading application may be any suitable software,hardware, or both configured to implement the features described herein.In one suitable approach, the electronic trading application may belocated at a central location (e.g., a central server, such as server110). In another suitable approach, the electronic trading applicationmay reside among different locations (e.g., a network).

In one particular embodiment, the electronic trading application mayinclude client-side software, hardware, or both. For example, theelectronic trading application may encompass one or more Web pages orWeb page portions (e.g., via any suitable encoding, such as HyperTextMarkup Language (HTML), Dynamic HyperText Markup Language (DHTML),Extensible Markup Language (XML), JavaServer Pages (JSP), Active ServerPages (ASP), or any other suitable approaches).

Furthermore, although the electronic trading application is describedherein as being implemented on user computer equipment, this is onlyillustrative. As described hereinabove, the electronic tradingapplication may be implemented on any suitable platform (e.g., PC,mainframe computer, dumb terminal, data display, two-way pager, wirelessterminal, portable telephone, portable computer, palmtop computer, H/PC,automobile PC, PDA, Internet-enabled cellular phone, combined cellularphone and PDA, etc.) to provide such features.

Interactive graphical representation of a market for an electronictrading system are provided. As described hereinabove, an individual isbetter suited to determine a pattern on a graph than in a table ofinformation. Users of the electronic trading system may take advantageof this ability in order to facilitate the trading of financialinstruments. Financial instruments may include, for example, fixedincome related instruments (e.g., United States Treasuries, UnitedKingdom Gilts, European Government bonds, and Emerging Market debts,swaps, and repos), securities, stocks, currencies, etc. The examplesprovided hereinbelow are related to the trading of fixed income relatedinstruments. However, these examples are merely illustrative, and thesystems and methods of the present invention may be used in connectionwith any suitable financial instrument.

FIG. 3 shows a graphical trading interface that may be provided to auser by the graphical trading interface application. (It should be notedthat the terms “user” and “trader,” in reference to a participant in anelectronic trading system, are used interchangeably herein.) In general,graphical trading interface 300, or simply graph 300, provides a userwith a graphical representation of a market. In other words, anyfinancial instrument having two or more related parameters that can be“plotted” on a graph may be provided to the user in graph 300. Thefinancial information used to create graph 300 may be information thatis typically stored in a tabular format (e.g., a spreadsheet). In theexample shown in FIG. 3, graph 300 includes a “U.S. Agency and TreasuryCurve” (as shown in drop-down title box 301). The user may be providedwith a number of different graphs from which to choose. For example, theuser may select drop-down title box 301 to access a list of possiblegraphs (not shown). The user may select drop-down title box 301 by usingan input device (e.g., input device 206 of FIG. 2) such as a mouse,keyboard, or any other suitable input device.

Graph 300 has a first axis 302 and a second axis 304. As describedhereinabove, axes 302 and 304 represent two related parameters inconnection with the financial instrument curves shown in graph 300. Inthis example, first axis 302 represents the maturity date for afinancial instrument, and second axis 304 represents the yield of afinancial instrument. (It should be noted that the values shown alongsecond axis 304 (e.g., “1,” “2,” “3,” etc.) represent yield as apercentage, and therefore a yield of “1” is actually a yield of “1%.”)However, these examples are merely illustrative, and axes 302 and 304may represent any suitable parameters in connection with a financialinstrument. For example, instead of representing the yield of afinancial instrument, second axis 304 could represent the price of afinancial instrument.

As shown, graph 300 has two curves 306 and 308. In the example shown,curve 306 represents United States Agencies and curve 308 representsUnited States Treasuries. Thus, graph 300 shows the relationship betweenUnited States Agencies curve 306 and United States Treasuries curve 308.More generally, graph 300 shows the “spread” between United StatesAgencies and United States Treasuries over maturity dates (i.e., firstaxis 302). This spread may be of particular importance to a trader, asUnited States Treasuries are typically considered a “yardstick” by whichto measure the value of United States Agencies. It should be noted thatthe present example of a spread is merely illustrative. The electronictrading system may provide other yardsticks in connection with financialinstruments, such as, for example, an option adjusted spread (OAS) forcallable bonds, net basis and “optionality Greeks” for deliverablebonds, weighted average life and maturity for mortgage-backed securities(MBS), forward spreads based on repo, rates for forward “structures” ofsynthetic borrowing or lending, etc.

Preferably, the curves shown in graph 300 are updated in real-time. Inother words, the curves shown in graph 300 are updated as the graphicaltrading interface application keeps up with some activity (e.g., changesin the yield of a financial instrument, changes in available bids oroffers for financial instruments, etc.). In one example, the graphicaltrading interface application may receive information in connection withsome activity from a trading platform that forms a portion of theelectronic trading system (e.g., eSpeed™ trading platform). In anotherexample, the graphical trading interface application may receiveinformation in connection with some activity from an external source,such as a different trading platform or a financial market ticker. Themarket ticker may include, for example, information in connection withthe trading platform that forms a portion of the electronic tradingsystem, in addition to information in connection with other tradingplatforms.

The user may be able to “zoom into” an area of interest on graph 300. Inone example, first axis 302 may be divided into discrete portions, or“vertical columns,” of a fixed width. In this example, in which firstaxis 302 represents the maturity date, the fixed width is a length oftime, such as one year, two years, etc. When a user selects a portion ofgraph 300 using, for example, an input device (e.g., input device 206 ofFIG. 2), the user is actually selecting a particular vertical column ofa fixed width. More specifically, the point on graph 300 that the userselects is actually along a “center axis” of the vertical column. In theexample shown, the user has selected a point on graph 300 that is alongthe center axis of column 310. Column 310 defines the span of maturitydates for United States Agency curve 306 and United States Treasurycurve 308 from February 2008 to October 2010. It should be noted that,although this example is described in terms of vertical columns,“horizontal columns” could also be defined by dividing second axis 304into discrete portions using the principles described hereinabove.

[CF-73 02-1073 0039] In another example, shown in FIG. 4, the user mayselect the desired width of first axis 302 for zooming into an area ofinterest in graph 300. When the user selects a portion of graph 300using, for example, an input device (e.g., input device 206 of FIG. 2),a selectable date range overlay 400 may be displayed on graph 300. Theuser may enter a start date in field 402 and an end date in field 404.The user may submit the start and end dates by selecting go button 406.In the example shown, the user has entered “02/08” in start field 402and “10/10” in end field 404. These entries correspond to a range ofmaturity dates for Unites States Agencies curve 306 and United StatesTreasuries curve 308 from February 2008 to October 2010. Althoughoverlay 400 as shown in FIG. 4 provides a user with fields 402 and 404corresponding to start and end dates, respectively, this example ismerely illustrative. Fields 402 and 404 of overlay 400 may correspond toany suitable parameter represented by first axis 302, thereby setting awidth of the first axis for zooming into graph 300. Also, as statedhereinabove in connection with FIG. 3, overlay 400 may also be used toselect a width of second axis 304 for zooming into graph 300.

FIG. 5 shows a graphical trading interface that may be provided to auser by the graphical trading interface application. Graphical tradinginterface 500, or simply graph 500, may be provided, for example, inresponse to a user zooming into graph 300 (as described hereinabove inreference to FIGS. 3 and 4). Graph 500 shows a range of maturity datesfor Unites States Agencies curve 506 from February 2008 to October 2010.

In this example, first axis 502 of graph 500 represents the maturitydate for a financial instrument (as in, for example, FIG. 3), and secondaxis 504 represents the spread between the yields of financialinstruments. For example, second axis 504 may represent the spreadbetween the yields for curves 306 and 308 of FIG. 3. (It should be notedthat the values shown along second axis 504 (e.g., “40.00,” “45.00,”“50.00,” etc.) must be multiplied by a factor of 10-2 to relate thevalues shown along second axis 504 to the values shown along second axis304 of FIG. 3.) Thus, in the example of FIG. 5, United States Treasuriescurve 308 of FIG. 3 is not shown. This is because, as statedhereinabove, second axis 504 represents the spread between United StatesAgencies curve 306 and United States Treasuries curve 308. However, theexample of FIG. 5 is merely illustrative, and United States Treasuriescurve 308 (or any other suitable yardstick curve) may be provided.

Graph 500 is shown as having two axes (i.e., first axis 502 and secondaxis 504). However, the example of FIG. 5 is merely illustrative, andgraph 500 may have any suitable number of axes (e.g., one, two, three,etc.). (An illustrative example of a graph that is a “singularity,”thereby having only one axis, is described hereinbelow in reference toFIG. 8.)

Graph 500 includes first symbols 508 (i.e., diamonds) that correspond tocurrent bids and second symbols 510 (i.e., squares) that correspond tocurrent offers. Curve 506 may represent the “fair value” curve withrespect to the current bids and offers shown in graph 500. In theexample shown, each of the bids and offers corresponds to a bid or anoffer for United States Agencies at a particular maturity date.

The user may desire to view information in connection with a specificbid and/or offer. In the example of FIG. 6, information overlay 600 isshown in connection with both a bid 602 and an offer 604 for a UnitedStates Agency having a maturity date of March 2009. Information overlay600 may be displayed in response to an interaction by the user. Forexample, the user may run a cursor over top of bid 602 and/or offer 604to view information overlay 600. Information overlay 600 shows theissue, coupon, maturity date, exact market spread, and size related tobid 602 and offer 604. In this example, the issue is “FHLMC,” or FederalHome Loan Mortgage Corporation (also known as “Freddie Mac”), the couponis “5 3/4,” the maturity date is “3/09,” or March 2009, the exact marketspread is “58.4/56.4,” and the size is “5×5.”

As described hereinabove, a user may place a trade directly from agraphical trading interface. From graph 500 of FIG. 6, for example, theuser may desire to place a bid or offer or to submit a hit or lift inresponse to a particular bid or offer. In an example in which the userdesires to place a bid or offer, the user may select any portion ofgraph 500. In response to the user's selection, the user may be providedwith trading dialog box overlay 700 as shown in FIG. 7. Trading dialogbox overlay 700 may include price field 702 and size field 704, intowhich the user may enter a desired price and size, respectively, for aparticular financial instrument. The user may then select either bidbutton 706 or offer button 708, depending on the desired transaction.

Referring back to FIG. 6, in an example in which the user desires tosubmit a hit or lift in response to a particular bid or offer,respectively, the user may select any portion of graph 500. Preferably,the user selects one of a bid 602, an offer 604, or curve 506. Inresponse to the user's selection, the user may be provided with tradingdialog box overlay 700 as shown in FIG. 7. If the user selected a bid602, an offer 604, or curve 506, price field 702 and/or size field 704may be pre-filled with information corresponding to the selection. Ifone or both of price field 702 and size field 704 are not pre-filled, orif the user desires to alter the value in one or both of the fields, theuser may do so prior to selecting either buy button 710 or sell button712 to complete the transaction. Trading dialog box overlay 700 includesclose button 714 to allow the user to close the overlay and return tograph 500.

Graph 500 of FIGS. 5 and 6 is shown as having two axes (i.e., first axis502 and second axis 504). However, this example is merely illustrative,and as mentioned hereinabove, an illustrative example of a graph that isa “singularity” is shown in FIG. 8.

FIG. 8 shows various graphical trading interfaces that may be providedto a user by the graphical trading interface application. Graphicaltrading interfaces 800, 802, and 804, or simply graphs 800, 802, and804, are graphs having only one axis each. Multiple graphs are shown atone time in FIG. 8 in contrast to, for example, FIG. 5, in which onlyone graph (i.e., graph 500) is shown. This is because graphs 800, 802,and 804 do not take up much space on a display (e.g., display 204 ofworkstation 102 (FIG. 2)). However, the example of FIG. 8 is merelyillustrative, and any suitable number of graphs that are singularitiesmay be displayed at one time for a user (e.g., one, two, three, etc.).

As shown in drop-down title box 806, graph 800 represents a certainparameter (i.e., axis 808) in connection with a United States Agencyhaving a maturity date of “5/08,” or May 2008. The user may be providedwith a number of different graphs from which to choose. For example, theuser may select drop-down title box 806 to access a list of possiblegraphs (not shown). Graph 800 includes axis 808, which in this examplerepresents the spread between the yield for the United States Agencyhaving a maturity date of May 2008 and the United States Treasury havinga maturity date of May 2008. Graph 800 includes first symbol 810 (i.e.,a diamond) that corresponds to a current bid and second symbol 812(i.e., a square) that corresponds to a current offer for the UnitedStates Agency.

The information provided in graph 800 corresponds to a portion of theinformation provided in graph 500 (FIG. 5). For example, as shown inFIG. 5, the spread (i.e., second axis 504) for bid 508 and offer 510 fora United States Agency having a maturity date of May 2008 (i.e., firstaxis 502) is the same as the spread shown in graph 800 of FIG. 5, asrepresented by axis 808. Thus, while graph 500 (FIG. 5) shows the spreadover a span of maturity dates, as represented by axes 502 and 504, graph800 shows the spread for a particular maturity date, as represented byaxis 808.

The example of FIG. 8 has been described in connection with graph 800.However, it should be noted that graphs 802 and 804 have identicalfeatures to those described in connection with graph 800 (i.e., axis,first symbol, second symbol, drop-down title box). The differencebetween graphs 802 and 804, obviously, is that each of graphs 802 and804 represent the spread between the yield for a United States Agencyhaving a particular maturity date and a United States Treasury havingthe same maturity date.

From any of graphs 800, 802, and 804, the user may desire to place a bidor offer or to submit a hit or lift in response to a particular bid oroffer. As described hereinabove in connection with FIG. 6, the user maybe provided with a trading dialog box overlay (e.g., trading dialog boxoverlay 700 of FIG. 7) in response to the user's interaction with anyone of graphs 800, 802, and 804 (not shown). As described hereinabove,the trading dialog box may be pre-filled with information correspondingto the selection.

FIG. 9 shows a graphical trading interface that may be provided to theuser by the graphical trading interface application. Graphical tradinginterface 900, or simply graph 900, provides the user with the abilityto compare curves to one another, each curve representing a range ofvalues of a financial instrument, and to place a trade directly from thegraph. In the example shown in FIG. 9, graph 900 includes a UnitedStates Treasury curve 902 for treasuries having a maturity of ten years(“usg_10y”) and a United States Treasury curve 904 for treasuries havingmaturity of twenty years (“usg_20y”). The user may be provided with anumber of different curves from which to choose. For example, the usermay select a first curve (e.g., curve 902) from drop-down title box 906and a second curve (e.g., curve 904) from drop-down title box 908.Although only two drop-down title boxes are shown, the user may beprovided with any number of title boxes or other such options to displayany number of curves for comparison in graph 900. Because graph 900includes more than one curve, a legend such as legend 910 may beincluded in order to differentiate between different curves.

A comparison of curves, each curve representing a range of values of afinancial instrument, may provide a trader with a quick, accuraterepresentation of a market's current position. Preferably, the curvesshown in graph 900 are updated in real-time. In other words, and asdescribed in more detail in reference to FIG. 5, the curves shown ingraph 900 are updated as the graphical trading interface applicationkeeps up with some activity (e.g., changes in the yield of a financialinstrument, changes in available bids or offers for financialinstruments, etc.). As shown in FIG. 9, region 912 may be of particularinterest to a trader. In the example shown in the FIG., the ten-yearTreasuries represented by curve 902 are valued at a price that is higherthan expected, while the twenty-year Treasuries represented by curve 904are valued at a price that is lower than expected. Thus, the trader maydesire to capitalize on the anomalous situation quickly and easily.Specifically, the trader may desire to both sell ten-year Treasuries andbuy twenty-year Treasuries. To do so, the trader may select region 912of graph 900 and, in response to the selection, may be provided withtrading dialog box overlay 1000 as shown in FIG. 10.

Trading dialog box overlay 1000 may allow the trader to both buy andsell in response to an anomalous situation such as that shown in FIG. 9.Trading dialog box overlay 1000 may include a buy region 1002 and a sellregion 1004. Both buy and sell regions 1002 and 1004, respectively, maybe pre-filled with price and size information corresponding to region912 of graph 900 (FIG. 9). To place the trades, the user may select buybutton 1006 and sell button 1008.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of illustrative steps involved in providing aninteractive graphical representation of a market. At step 1100, a graphmay be displayed. For example, a graph such as graph 300 (FIG. 3); graph500 (FIG. 5); graph 802, 804, or 806 (FIG. 8); or graph 900 (FIG. 9) maybe displayed. The graph may be displayed on a display of a workstation,such as display 204 of workstation 102 (FIG. 2). At step 1102, a usermay be allowed to select a portion of the graph. In one example, inresponse to the user's selection of a portion of the graph, a tradingdialog box may be displayed at step 1104. For example, a trading dialogbox such as trading dialog box 700 (FIG. 7) or trading dialog box 1000(FIG. 10) may be displayed. In another example, in response to theuser's selection of a portion of the graph, a trading dialog box may bedisplayed that is pre-filled with information that corresponds to theuser-selected portion of the graph (step 1106).

For the convenience of the reader, the above description has focused ona representative sample of all possible embodiments, a sample thatteaches the principles of the invention and conveys the best modecontemplated for carrying it out. Throughout this application and itsassociated file history, when the term “invention” is used, it refers tothe entire collection of ideas and principles described; in contrast,the formal definition of the exclusive protected property right is setforth in the claims, which exclusively control. The description has notattempted to exhaustively enumerate all possible variations. Otherundescribed variations or modifications may be possible. Where multiplealternative embodiments are described, in many cases it will be possibleto combine elements of different embodiments, or to combine elements ofthe embodiments described here with other modifications or variationsthat are not expressly described. In many cases, one feature or group offeatures may be used separately from the entire apparatus or methodsdescribed. Many of those undescribed variations, modifications andvariations are within the literal scope of the following claims, andothers are equivalent.

What is being claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: rendering, by at leastone processor, a multidimensional graph on a display device; plotting,by the at least one processor, a plurality of first symbols on thegraph, each first symbol being indicative of a current bid on afinancial instrument; plotting, by the at least one processor, aplurality of second symbols on the graph, each second symbol beingindicative of a current offer on a financial instrument; plotting, bythe at least one processor, a curve on the graph, the curve beingrepresentative of a fair value for the financial instrument; detecting,by the at least one processor, a selection of a first symbol, a secondsymbol, or a point on the curve; and in response to detecting theselection, generating, by the at least one processor, a trading dialogbox on the display device and pre-filling at least one field in thetrading dialog box with information corresponding to the selection ofthe first symbol, the second symbol, or the point on the curve.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein a first axis of the graph corresponds to amaturity date.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein rendering themultidimensional graph further comprises dividing, by the at least oneprocessor, the first axis into discrete portions.
 4. The method of claim3, wherein each discrete portion is indicative of a time at which thefinancial instrument reaches maturity.
 5. The method of claim 1, whereina second axis of the graph corresponds to a yield.
 6. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the financial instrument comprises a United StatesTreasury, a United Kingdom Gilt, a European Government Bond, an emergingmarket debt, a swap, or a repo.
 7. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising zooming in, by the at least one processor, to a portion ofthe graph, in response to an input detected on the portion of the graph.8. An apparatus comprising: a display device; at least one processor to:render a multidimensional graph on a display device; plot a plurality offirst symbols on the graph, each first symbol being indicative of acurrent bid on a financial instrument; plot a plurality of secondsymbols on the graph, each second symbol being indicative of a currentoffer on the financial instrument; plot a curve on the graph, the curvebeing representative of a fair value for the financial instrument;detect a selection of a first symbol, a second symbol, or a point on thecurve; and in response to detecting the selection, generate a tradingdialog box on the display device and pre-filling at least one field inthe trading dialog box with information corresponding to the selectionof the first symbol, the second symbol, or the point on the curve. 9.The apparatus of claim 8, wherein a first axis of the graph correspondsto a maturity date.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein, to render thegraph, the at least one processor is configured to divide the first axisinto discrete portions.
 11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein eachdiscrete portion is indicative of a time at which the financialinstrument reaches maturity.
 12. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein asecond axis of the graph corresponds to a yield.
 13. The apparatus ofclaim 8, wherein the financial instrument comprises a United StatesTreasury, a United Kingdom Gilt, a European Government Bond, an emergingmarket debt, a swap, or a repo.
 14. The apparatus of claim 8, furthercomprising zooming in, by the at least one processor, to a selectedportion of the graph, in response to an input detected on the selectedportion.